CHANGE OF LIFE Secrets one
by GStales
Summary: The Change of Life stories were originally written a number of years ago in response to various writing group challenges.
1. Chapter 1

**Change of Life**

Secrets

one

Matt Dillon walked with a purpose across Front Street. He bounded up the board walk and pushed his way into his office. He slammed the door and slid the deadbolt in place. Quickly, he pulled the shades and then taking two steps, clicked the lock on the side door. Confident he wouldn't be disturbed, he eased his large frame to his desk chair. A satisfied smile spread over his face as he considered what he had finally accomplished. He had in his possession the deed to the Watkins Ranch. It had taken him three years to do so, but finally it was his. To be honest, it wasn't much of a ranch at this point. It would take a lot of work, but it had potential. Despite the fact the place had been vacant for a half dozen years, the house was still a solid structure. A little paint and a woman's touch and the place would make a fine home. His strong features softened. Finally, he was going to be able to offer Kitty Russell something more tangible than that dream of a far off someday – he was going to be able to give her a home and the promise of a future together. He slid his hand into the inside pocket of his leather vest and removed a small velvet box. His large hands fumbled with the delicate fastener before it released its hold. A twinkle glistened in his eyes as he studied the contents. Matt Dillon had kept the ranch and his plans a secret these three years, but the best secret was hidden away in the box. He had in mind starting some fireworks of his own this coming 4th of July.

Dillon inhaled slowly as the recollection of a long ago Independence Day clouded in on his thoughts. He shook his head to clear away the memory, he'd made some mistakes over the years, but he was determined to finally set things right.

**GS GS GS**

The Dodge City that had once been known as the Gomorrah of the Plains had now become almost respectable. Churches, schools and stores were replacing the whorehouses and wild saloons of the early years. From 1875 through 1885 Dodge City had been the largest cattle market in the world. But things had changed in the last two years. The railroads now reached to Texas, and the cattlemen no longer needed to drive their beef to Kansas. Farmers were fencing in the open range and planting a new crop that had been introduced by a religious group of immigrants from Russia called Mennonites. This new variety of winter wheat, identified as Turkey Red was planted in the fall instead of the spring, making it less susceptible to diseases and insects.

All this meant that life had become a little bit easier and far more predictable for the Marshal of Dodge City, Kansas.

**GS GS GS**

Sitting at her dressing table, Kitty Russell put the finishing touches on her hair securing the elaborate coiffure with a pair of strategically placed tortoise shell combs, Matt would be coming soon to take her out to dinner and she smiled at her reflection in anticipation. She allowed herself the luxury of appreciating her own beauty. Like an artist's canvas with the work nearly complete she was content with the results. Perhaps she would never be a masterpiece but the hues and textures, which had colored her days, made the portrait memorable.

She glanced at the photograph to her right, before picking it up. Even after all this time the mere image of Matt Dillon was enough to set her heart racing. They had always been suited, the one to the other. Passion, the hallmark of their early years had matured to a love deeper and far more fulfilling than a mere act of sex. That wasn't to say their physical relationship had deteriorated over the years, the opposite in fact had happened. Urgency had been exchanged for an ardent knowledge of what the other wanted and needed.

Kitty gently set the picture back in its place. She'd have the real thing to admire shortly. She was about to rise when a strong spasm in her stomach seized her by surprise. She'd been having them off and on all day, but this one took hold harder than its predecessors and she inhaled deeply several times before the pain was gone. A clammy sweat beaded her forehead and she felt hot and cold at the same time. Needing fresh air, she slowly got up from the dressing table and walked to the open window. Below her, flags and streamers were already decorating the town. A large banner was strung across Front Street, advertising the annual `Dodge City Independence Day Celebration,' and red, white and blue bunting was draped from balconies and porches.

Kitty Russell wasn't the kind of woman to dwell on what might have been, and what could never be, but it was harder at this time of year. In that moment of weakness ghosts from the past invaded her consciousness, "Thirteen." She said aloud. "Thirteen years ago." Turning from the window she looked again to the picture of Dillon on the dressing table and sighed releasing the painful memory. She lengthened her spine and straightened her neck before grabbing her gloves and handbag. She left her room shutting the door softly behind her.

**GS GS GS**

Standing at the bar waiting for her, the lawman swirled the whiskey around in his glass and then slowly sipped it. He knew this time of year hit her hard. Not that she complained, it was just that look in her eyes, or the way he would catch her suddenly glancing off into space, her body tense and distant. The thought of her hurt brought heartache to him; he refilled his glass and swallowed the contents in one gulp.

His eyes narrowed, as a memory became a clear image. From an innocence born of youth, life had seemed so perfect that long ago spring, they'd never been happier before or since.

Dillon gave rein to the memory hoping in doing so he could lessen its pull. It was early in spring that they'd volunteered to take care of Jeb and Mary Walker's infant son while the young parents took a second honeymoon. Jeb and Matt's shared history had gone way back. They'd served together in the war and deputied under the same Sheriff in Texas. Both men moved to Kansas within the same year. Jeb had taken a job as Sheriff in Wichita, there he'd met and fallen in love with Mary. "It's me or the badge," the young woman had told him. Jeb had chosen Mary. Matt and Kitty had traveled to Wichita for the wedding where Dillon stood up as his friend's best man. Never had Matt experienced such love all around him, Jeb and Mary's love for each other, the friendship he had with Jeb and the special feelings he had for Kitty.

True to his word, Jeb gave up the badge and the newlyweds bought a farm, within the first year they had a baby, and named him Matthew. Even now, all these years later Dillon still felt a jolt at the thought of the baby who had been his godson. He and Kitty had been there for the Christening. He awkwardly held the new baby in his arms and marveled at the tiny size. "By golly, he's a little mite."

Mary Walker had replied with her usual good humor, "He didn't seem so small a few weeks ago." Her words embarrassed Matt, but Kitty had looked at Mary with frank admiration, and had listened with rapt curiosity as Jeb and Mary shared details of the baby's birth.

Kitty had been standing at Matt's side waiting eagerly for her turn to hold the baby, finally she said, "Okay Godfather, it's time to give the Godmother a chance at that baby." Gingerly he handed the little one to her waiting arms, "Watch his head." He had warned.

He needn't have worried for Kitty Russell had a natural instinct where babies were concerned that surprised even him. She carried little Matt to Mary's rocking chair and sat down, placing the baby on her knees in front of her and supporting his back and head with her arms and hands. She cooed sweet baby nothings to the little one. The infant studied her closely before rewarding her with one of life's purest miracles, a baby's first smile.

It had been Kitty's suggestion the following spring, that Jeb and Mary go away for a week and she would tend to the baby and the chores. The crops were in the field and there was a neighbor who had offered to help with the heavy work. By this time baby Matt was a year old and off breast milk so Kitty was sure she could handle things. It was a sheer whim that Matt Dillon had offered to go with her.

For that one week thirteen years ago they had had everything - a farm, a home and a perfect little baby. Each day of that week was a gift and Matt and Kitty were wise enough to realize it.

Matt thought back to the first morning, he remembered waking up to find Kitty sleeping beside him, how pretty she had looked as the shadows of night lifted. He had propped himself up on an elbow to watch her. At the Long Branch, he'd been used to seeing her in fancy negligees, but here she wore a white cotton nightgown with long sleeves and buttons right up to the neckline. For some reason he couldn't explain she'd never been so desirable. He had smiled to himself thinking for once he had her all to himself with all the time in the world to enjoy it. Carefully he'd rolled on top of her, resting the bulk of his weight on his arms. Leaning forward he whispered in her ear. "It's time to get up and feed this hungry cowboy Ma'am." Her eyes opened to find him face to face. The pressure of his body on hers became more intimate. Her reply was husky, "Yup, something tells me you've worked up quite an appetite." He lowered his lips to hers, his hands holding her hands, fingers laced together. They gave into the sweetness of the moment, eager bodies keeping a rhythmic pace with heartbeat. Rolling over to the side his fingers began the work of releasing the buttons of her gown.

She was the first to hear the baby's crying. Her body stiffened in his arms. With a low moan Dillon ordered, "Just be real quiet, maybe he'll go back to sleep." But he didn't and the crying became louder.

"He's probably wet, I'll change his diaper, and maybe he'll settle down after that." She ventured, climbing out of bed. With a sigh the frustrated lawman watched her leave the room, he plumped the pillows behind him and leaned back, listening to the sounds coming from the baby's room. He'd grinned as he heard Kitty talking to the blond haired, blue eyed baby. "How's my big boy this morning?" she cooed. He could hear the sounds of a game of baby peek-a-boo and the child's delighted giggles after each `boo'.

Finally he'd heard the soft padding of her footsteps returning down the hall and he thought; `now it's this big boy's turn.' But she had brought the baby with her. "He wants his bottle," she explained as she placed the fussy baby in Matt's arms. "He's just not going to settle down again without it."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Amuse him Cowboy, sing him a song, or tell him a story."

His clumsy efforts only made little Matt cry harder, in near panic Dillon had shouted, "Kitty what's taking so long?" When she didn't answer, he realized he had been left to his own devices. From some far off place in his memory he recalled a tune his mother had sung. Matt Dillon was not given to humming a tune, much less singing the words, but when Kitty returned with the bottle, he was singing to the delight of Baby Matt. Kitty had stood in the doorway listening to his rendition, "Shoo fly don't bother me, shoo fly don't bother me, shoo fly don't bother me for I belong to somebody."

She crawled back into the bed and Matt had handed the baby to her. Settling the little boy in her arms she gave him the bottle. Dillon had watched in amazement as the baby's chubby little hand reached up to gently pat Kitty's face, and his little mouth smiled even as he sucked on the nipple. The innocent sweetness of that moment still tugged at his heart.

**GS GS GS**

Matt Dillon hadn't milked a cow in years; Jeb's prized Guernsey was obviously aware of that as she had eyed him suspiciously, it had taken a while before they formed an understanding. He'd finally achieved a measure of success and was headed to the springhouse milk pail in hand.

Kitty with the baby on her hip was trying to hang wet diapers on the line to dry. Matt put the milk pail down and took the baby from her to make her job a little easier. He'd whistled at the long line of diapers flapping in the breeze. "How many of those does he go through?" Dillon had asked.

She stopped hanging the diapers for a moment to grin at him, "Well, near as I can figure it, it's about two diapers to every one bottle of milk." Dillon whistled again. "Well, I'd better get this stuff up to the springhouse, wouldn't want to put a damper on his routine." With milk pail in one hand and Baby Matt in the other he had made his way up to the springhouse.

The day had been full, it had been filed with the ordinary tasks of keeping a farm running - pigs to slop, chickens to feed, pens to clean. He barely had time for a noon meal before he was back out to do more chores.

He figured Kitty's day had been just as busy, baking bread, washing clothes, weeding the garden and running after Baby Matt. They sat down to a cold supper that night topped off with an apple cake Kitty had managed to bake that afternoon while the baby napped. "Miss Kitty, this wouldn't happen to be piss apple would it?" he'd asked recalling the first apple cake she'd ever made for him, and earned a hearty laugh from her in reply. Little Matt looking at the happy grownups had joined in their merriment with giggles of his own.

The final task of the night had involved a bath for the baby. Dillon and the toddler sat together on the floor, Matt carefully building a block tower and the baby gleefully knocking it down. Meanwhile, Kitty had prepared the bath. She'd heated the water to just the right temperature then poured it into the little tub. "Okay, get his clothes off and bring him in." She'd called from the kitchen. This was a task which proved easier said than done. The little boy squirmed and wiggled, he went limp as a noodle and stiff as a board and finally made his naked escape from the lawman. Matt found him crawling under the bed, scooting to the farthest corner where giggling, he refused to come out.

"Kitty!" Dillon called. "Kitty I need you!"

She ran up the stairs in a panic wondering what could have happened. She entered the room to find Matt on his hands and knees trying to coax the baby out from under the bed. She had to bite her lip to  
keep from laughing out loud.

Finally the bath had been accomplished, soaking all three of them in the process.

The day had ended on the front porch swing, his godson sleeping in his arms, sucking contentedly on his thumb, Kitty drowsy at his side, her head pillowed against his shoulder. The swing kept time with the chorus of crickets and cicadas and Matt Dillon said a prayer of thanks for the simple blessing of a day well lived.

It had been less than a month later that they had received word that Mary and the baby were dead.


	2. Chapter 2

Two

The memory of how pretty Kitty had looked that sad morning had stayed with him all these years later. Her cheeks had just a hint of a flush to them and her eyes sparkled with some secret anticipation that made him want to forget his responsibilities and spend the day with her. But duty to a tin badge demanded he attend to some business with the Sheriff in Garden City. "I should be back tonight." He had promised.

She'd tried to conceal her disappointment behind a well-intentioned smile. They were standing in the main room of the saloon, propriety denied any public display of affection; defying convention she stood on tiptoes and gave him a quick peck to his cheek. "Stop by when you get back, no matter how late it is; promise me. I have a surprise for you."

Her enthusiasm was contagious and he laughed, "I promise, I promise." He was turning on his heel to leave when Barney came running in from the telegraph office. He held an envelope out to the Marshal. "It's bad news." He warned.

Dillon had given Barney a sharp look and a nod of thanks. The telegraph man lingered for a moment waiting to see if Dillon wanted to respond to the message. "You can go Barney." Matt told him and waited until the small bespeckeled man left before he opened the envelope. No physical blow could have caused him more pain than what he read in the telegram. He knew Kitty was watching him and knew what this news would do to her. He took her arm and led her to the back of the saloon. "Let's go in your office."

He'd nearly broken down once inside the tidy little room. Turning away from her, his mind grappled with the truth in the words he'd just read. From some deep hidden reserve he found the strength to say them.

"What is it? Matt, What's wrong?" She'd walked to him, taken his arm and tried to turn him to face her.

He remained stiff, immovable, his eyes focused on a whiskey poster hanging on the wall. "Mary and the baby are dead."

Her hand had dropped from his arm. "No." she cried, her eyes wide in horror. "NO, no…no", she fell forward and he turned to catch her in his arms, sobs welled up from the depth of her and shook her being, `no, no." She repeated that one word over and over until he feared she'd gone mad with grief. Helpless to ease her pain he held her to him; his shirt was soaked by her tears, and her hair dampened by his.

They were in shock; their world rocked to its foundation, no Kansas twister could have caused more devastation than this news did to their hearts.

He decided he had to travel to Wichita to be with Jeb, Kitty had begged him to let her come, but the deaths had hit her so hard, that Doc Adams had advised him against it. Nothing could have prepared Matt Dillon for the for the complete despair of Jeb Walker. They had sat together in the kitchen of the once happy farmhouse, a half empty bottle of whiskey between them as Jeb revealed the details of his wife and son's deaths. With his head in his hands, the man sobbed, "Why did I leave them alone that day?" He'd made his weekly trip to town for supplies; while he was gone an outlaw by the name of Rubal Wolf had descended upon the farm. He'd been eager to even an old score with Jeb, but finding his pretty wife alone and unprotected the outlaw decided this would be a better way to exact payment. Mary had escaped from his clutches, holding the baby in her arms she ran down the road, Rubal taking aim with his rifle had gunned both Mary and the baby down. Had Jeb returned home just minutes sooner he might have saved them. As it was, Jeb shot Rubal Wolf and killed him.

"I should never have married her Matt; you remember what ol Kimbro always said, the law and a wife don't abide. I thought if I gave up the law it wouldn't matter, but you can't never give up the law, it don't let you. It was me that killed her, the day I took her for my wife, that was the day I killed her and my baby boy." He'd broken down then, and there was nothing Matt could say that would take away his friend's pain. The thought that came to Dillon and ate away at him was it could have been Kitty lying dead in a cold grave.

That night the sound of a single gunshot awoke Matt from his sleep. He had returned to the kitchen to find his friend Jeb Walker released from his anguish.

The most difficult decision Matt Dillon had ever made was one that he had attempted to make twice before in their seven-year relationship, he had to give Kitty up. If he loved her, and God knew he loved her, than he had to give her up. He couldn't risk Mary's fate befalling Kitty. How he told her this without breaking down, he was never sure, because he knew his heart was weeping with the pain of it.

She had been in her office when he returned from Jeb's funeral. He had knocked at the door. "I'm back Kitty, I need to talk to you." He heard the scrape of her chair as she got up and came to the door to let him in. She must have read the pain in his face because she reached out to him, but he pulled back not daring to give in to an embrace. "Jeb's dead, he shot himself. I buried him on the hillside next to Mary and the baby." He said the words without emotion, knowing this was the only way he could get through what he had to do.

"Oh Matt, no" She must have exhausted all her tears at the news of Mary and the baby for she had no tears left for Jeb. Denied of the comfort of Dillon's embrace she wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and forth.

He couldn't look at her, he ran a dry tongue over his lips and swallowed hard, "It's over between us." Her eyes shot up to stare at him, her mouth opened, "you deserve more than I can give you, you deserve a home and family. I'm a lawman Kitty, that's just the way it is, and no amount of pretending is going to change that truth. Please try to understand." For a brief beat of his heart their eyes locked and connected before he turned away and left the room closing the door firmly between them.

He was determined to make it stick this time. He avoided the Long Branch at all cost. There was a town on the Oklahoma boarder that needed law and order and Matt volunteered to be the one to tame it. Gone from town for over a month, he found the longer she was out of his sight the more she was on his mind. His dreams had become a safe haven, because there he could be with her again.

He had bumped into her at Lathrop's store his first day back in Dodge. He had been startled by her appearance. She looked thin and pale and with a sadness that shook him. More than anything he had wanted to reach out to her, tell her he still cared, but he couldn't trust himself to talk to her, so he had turned around and left the store without saying a word. Two days later he had been called to the Long Branch when a brawl erupted between a couple of rowdy cowpokes. He had settled the fracas, telling Chester to take the fighters over to the jail to sleep off their orneriness. He had walked right past Kitty using every ounce of self control he possessed to keep from turning to her, it wasn't until he was outside of the doors that he looked back in the saloon and saw her running up the stairs to her room.

He'd been back in town less than a week when he received the telegram that Cade Mulgrew had escaped from prison and was headed for Dodge City. Matt had captured the notorious bank robber several years earlier in a shoot out that had resulted in the death of Cade's two older brothers. At the trial Cade had vowed to make Matt Dillon pay if it was the last thing he did.

It was on the Fourth of July, Dodge City wild with celebration that Chester recognized Cade and two others as they rode into town and tied their horses in front of the saloon. "Mr. Dillon, he's here, it's Cade Mulgrew; he just went in the Long Branch and looks like he brought a couple friends with him."

Mulgrew and his men were laying in wait for the lawman. Dillon entered the saloon, with gun in hand. "I'm taking you in Mulgrew." He warned.

"Not before I make you pay lawman."

"You'll have to gun down three of us Badge." Said one of Cade's accomplices, Dillon turned to look at the other two men, while Mulgrew whirled around reaching for his weapon, with deadly accuracy Matt had fired at Cade and the outlaw fell wounded to the floor. Dillon spun and fired at Cade's partners, hitting first one and then the other. Mulgrew in the last desperate act of his life had pulled out a knife; Kitty standing only a few feet away had watched this happening. Knowing Mulgrew's knife was aimed at Matt's back; without giving a second thought for herself Kitty had hurled herself between the deadly knife and the man she loved.

All this had happened in a matter of seconds, Kitty had fallen to the floor, with the knife embedded in her lower abdomen. Matt had dropped to his knees to take her in his arms, her blood spreading over the blue of his shirt, "Get Doc." he ordered, "Somebody, get Doc!"

It had been a busy day for the old doctor and he had retreated to his quarters early in hopes of getting a little rest before the cowboys started celebrating the holiday. He'd been sleeping at his desk when the gunfire woke him up. It sounded close: the Long Branch he figured, grabbing his medical bag he'd hurried down the stairs, across the alley to the saloon. At the bat-wing doors he paused to take in the scene. Seeing it was Kitty lying on the floor he ran to her side. She was conscious, but unable to speak. Her eyes connected with the old physician's and Matt could still recall the look of fear he saw reflected there. "Hold her still." He ordered and as Matt wrapped his arms around her forming a human vice, the doctor pulled the knife from her body. "Get her upstairs." He ordered.

Matt had carried her up the staircase to her room and placed her on the bed, "It'll be alright honey, just rest easy." He told her. "I'll be right here with you."

But she shook her head at him, "Get… out… don't want you here."

"Kitty?"

The effort to speak was costing her dearly, "Get… him… away ... please..."

Adams had looked at the lawman, "Matt, you'd better leave." Dillon shook his head is disbelief, but Adams hand to his back had pushed him out the bedroom door. He stood there for a long time staring at the closed door trying to hear what was going on inside, not knowing if he would ever see Kitty alive again.

For the better part of the next three days he remained in the empty saloon sitting at a back table that had always been 'theirs'. Occasionally someone would come to sit with him, maybe Chester or Will Roniger, whose wife Bessie had been helping Doc with Kitty. Even Louie Pheeters had spent time with the lawman - some secret long hidden pain forming a bond between the two men. Most of the time he sat alone with only a jumbled collection of memories to keep him company.

He had been desperate to see her, to speak to her, to let her know he had been wrong. On the second night he'd made his way up to her room again, not bothering to knock he'd barged into the room. Too many whiskeys and too little sleep had affected his judgment, "I gotta talk with her Doc."

"No, no" she had cried from the bed in a voice filled with anguish.

"For God's sake get out of here Matt, she doesn't want you here."

It was Bessie who had led him gently from the room and down the stairs. She had warmed up the soup that Ma Smalley had brought over earlier in the day and had seen to it that he had eaten. When the bowl was empty she had patted his hand and said. "I know how hard this is for you Marshal; she's just not in her right mind now." She noticed he still wore the blood stained shirt and suggested kindly, 'Why don't you go on back to your office freshen up, put on a clean shirt, maybe get a little rest. I'll come get you just as soon as Doc says ..." He nodded like a small child, relieved to be told what to do and went back to his office to do as Bessie suggested. But sleep wouldn't come and every time he closed his eyes he saw Kitty. Within the hour he was back at the table in the Long Branch.

Towards the end of the third day Dillon had looked up to see Doc Adams slowly descending the stairs. He headed right for Matt, pulled out a chair and wearily sat down. Grabbing one of the used whiskey glasses sitting on the table he poured himself a drink and drank it in one clean swallow. He took a moment to let the whiskey settle before turning to Matt, "She's going to be all right, but there's something you should know ... something you need to know … the wound ..." Adams stammered looking to the whiskey bottle for the words. He filled another glass and drank the contents before he could finish what he'd started to say. "I don't think Kitty will ever be able to have children Matt."

He sat in stunned silence while trying to comprehend the physician's prediction. He thought of the sweet image of Kitty with baby Matt. She had an easy natural connection with children, despite her profession Kitty was born to be a mother, this would kill her. He reached for the whiskey bottle but pulled back. "Will she see me Doc?"

He nodded his head, "Yes I think she will, but only for a few minutes, she's weak, she's lost a lot of blood, it's gonna take a long time and for her to heal."

Dillon put his palms on the table and pushed his body to stand. Towering over the elderly doctor he asked. "Does she know?"

Taking off his spectacles Adams rubbed his tired eyes and nodded.

Bessie Roniger was sitting next to Kitty's bed knitting a pair of socks when he came in. She stood up and motioned for him to take her place. There were tears in her eyes, but she offered him a smile of encouragement before leaving him alone with her.

He didn't say anything for a long while; he just sat there holding her hand. Finally he said, "Kitty, I'm sorry." There were so many things he was sorry for, sorry that she'd been hurt trying to save his life, sorry that his actions had caused her pain, sorry that he couldn't make things right and sorry that he would never hold their baby in his arms. But how could he express all that? Words came hard to Matt Dillon, so in the end he only repeated the words, "I'm sorry."

Her recovery took a long time, and it had been longer still for them to repair the damage to their relationship. She never spoke about the fact that she was unable to have children, but he knew this was one scar that would never fade away. For a long time after, he noticed a hardness to her that had not been there before.


	3. Chapter 3

Three

Dillon finished his whiskey and brought his mind back from the darkness of past, he looked up to see her coming down the stairs, she always reminded him of a queen when she descended those steps. He couldn't imagine any royalty more regal than Kitty Russell gliding down the Long Branch stairs, with her head held high and her shoulders back. The sight of her never failed to stir him, even after all of these years. She scanned the crowded floor until she saw him and smiled. Setting his glass down on the bar, he crossed the room to meet her at the bottom step. "All set to go?" he asked.

Doc had joined them for dinner and the two men were engaged in a lively conversation about the festivities for the week ahead culminating in the big fireworks on the Fourth. It had only been in the last two years that Dodge City had fireworks and the novelty had already become a tradition. The men didn't notice that Kitty wasn't joining in or that her dinner was barely touched until the pain in her stomach grabbed her by surprise causing a sharp intake of air. Both men stopped talking to look at her "Something wrong Kitty?" Matt asked, a worried look wrinkling his brow.

She willed the pain away. "Just a twinge, nothing to concern yourself with Cowboy." she lied.

Adams studied her, noting that her color was off and there was the faintest sheen of perspiration forming on her upper lip. Reaching over he held her wrist in his hand and took her pulse, which was too  
rapid for his liking. "Kitty, are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

She smiled with false bravado, "Oh Doc, it's just a woman thing I suspect."

Matt cleared his throat and looked away. That woman thing always made him uncomfortable and he decided to bring the conversation back to the fireworks. Kitty tried to eat some of the food on her plate  
but it was hard to ignore the growing ache in her midsection.

Walking her back to the Long Branch Matt said hopefully, "Maybe I'll see you later." She nodded and smiled in response.

By the time Kitty said good night to Sam, the pain was gone, and she almost thought she'd imagined it. A long soak in the tub relaxed her and she was dusting herself with sweet smelling talc when Matt  
knocked on her bedroom door. "Just a minute Matt." She called while she slipped into a silk negligee.

The champagne colored gown and robe were old, she'd had the set for many years, but like Kitty it had aged well. Dillon grinned seeing her in it, thinking of the first time she had worn it for him so many years ago. He wasted no time in taking her in his arms.

She giggled, "Can't you at least take off that gun belt Cowboy?" With a laugh he unbuckled his belt and took off his hat and then smiling pulled her back into his arms. Their lips met in a slow sweet kiss; like two explorers each rediscovering familiar territory, their heated bodies eager to stake a claim.

In the afterglow, they studied each other, both admiring the gentle toll the years had taken on the other, both amazed that after all these years they could still feel this way. When sleep came they were still nestled in each other's arms.

A finely tuned inner clock awoke him just before dawn. Duty to the badge warned him, this close to the fourth he should be back at the office instead of here in bed with a beautiful woman. He tried not to wake her up, but she immediately missed the warmth of his body. He finished buckling his belt and then leaned over the bed resting his hands on either side of her body, he kissed her soundly. "How about I pick you up for breakfast in a couple hours Red?" She nodded and then pulled him back down to her for one more kiss.

They met at Delmonicos several hours later. Matt had just finished off his usual breakfast of steak, eggs, and pancakes and was helping himself to what was left on Kitty's plate when he asked almost bashfully. "I was wondering if you had made any plans for watching the fireworks?"

She was a little confused, for she had assumed they would be watching them together. "No I thought we'd watch them from the Long Branch balcony like last year…"

"I was thinking of something a little different ... if things stay quiet maybe we could take a buggy ride to the old Watkins's place - should be a good view of the fireworks from up there." His face was as eager as a young boy's.

Her eyes lit up at the thought, "Oh Matt, I've always loved that place, remember how pretty Elsie Watkins used to have it, the house all painted white, with red geraniums in the window boxes?"''

Dillon nodded; he sat a little straighter, feeling mighty proud of himself, and more than a little relieved that she actually liked the place he'd bought to surprise her with. "Good, then it's all set, I'll see about Delmonicos packing us a basket."

"Oh, I can take care of that," she said with a grin, already planning a romantic menu.

They were abruptly interrupted by the sound of gunfire out in the street, as Matt stood up to investigate; Nathan Burke poked his head in the restaurant door. "Marshal somebody's robbing the bank."

Matt raced from the restaurant, with his gun in hand while Kitty stood watching from the window. As always she felt a familiar tug of fear for Matt's safety. She saw Matt and Festus ride out after the outlaws. Her eyes stayed fixed on the direction they had taken long after they were gone from sight.

Midmorning Doc stopped by the Long Branch for coffee with Kitty; he'd brought with him some sweet rolls that a patient had left in partial payment for the debt he owed the doctor. The saloon was quiet at this time of day and Doc wanted to use the opportunity to find out how Kitty was feeling. He knew she would never complain, it wasn't her nature, but he was also well aware of the fact he'd seen pain in her eyes the night before.

Pouring coffee for Kitty he remarked, "This is more than just female complaint isn't it?" She rubbed her forehead as though she were getting the beginning of headache. The old doctor frowned, "You do a lot of remembering at this time of year don't you Kitty?"

She gave him a rueful smile. "Doc why doesn't it get any easier, I keep thinking after all this time, the memory shouldn't hurt as much as it does."

"My guess is because it's a burden you've forced yourself to carry alone."

She nodded and stated resolutely, "I said it then Doc and I mean it now, this is the way it's gotta be. I just wish Matt were here now, I hate having him gone like this, I hate the not knowing, the wondering, the worry..."

He reached out and patted her hand, "I know, but just remember, Matt Dillon can take care of himself." It was a familiar line Adams had used to reassure her on many occasions such as this and so far she had no reason to doubt the truth of his words.

The doctor continued to study her, something wasn't right, "I think it's time for you to stop by the office, let me take a good look at you, I'm worried about you young lady."

She smiled at his use of the term 'young lady.' Here she was nearly forty and Doc still called her a young lady. "I have been feeling a little under the weather Doc," she admitted. "I tell you what, if I'm not feeling better by tomorrow, I'll let you have your way with me."

Matt and Festus came back to town around noon that day; Dillon stopped by the Long Branch just to let Kitty know they had caught the robbers and he and Festus would be taking them over to Fort Dodge, "A couple of Sgt. Holly's men." He told her, "Half drunk and acting on a dare, we'll let the army deal with them."

He glanced at the view outside the batwing doors, "I don't think we will be back before noon tomorrow, at least not with this rain."

A gentle drizzle was falling now, but the skies were dark, and there had been rumblings of thunder toward the west forecasting an all day storm.

She nodded, "Well just don't forget we've got a date for the fireworks."

"Oh don't worry, this is one date, I'll be around for."

She wished him a safe journey adding, "Take care Matt," and then he was gone.

Not long after Dillon left, Doc Adams stopped back to invite Kitty to lunch. She declined, "I'm not hungry." In truth the dull ache to her stomach had returned. Doc took off his glasses and eyed her, "Are you feeling worse? Do you need me Kitty?"

She smiled and shook her head, "Really Doc, I'm just fine."

By mid afternoon the dull ache had become a stabbing pain and she thought she really did need medical help. She climbed the stairs to Adams office only to find a note saying he was at the Ross place  
delivering a baby.

It started to rain harder as Kitty walked across the water soaked street. The pain had become a constant companion. It was a struggle just to make it home to the saloon. Sam saw her at the doorway leaning against the wall. He stopped what he was doing and hurried to her side. "Miss Kitty?" he questioned.

In a hushed voice she answered, "Sam, I'm not well, please help me upstairs." The barkeep wrapped a supporting arm around her guiding her across the crowded floor. She ignored the greetings of customers and concentrated on getting to her room, but at the stairs the pain became too much for her to bear. The swimming pools of darkness finally enveloped her and she fainted. Sam picked her up, he looked toward Burke who was watching wide eyed and slack jawed, "Get Doc, Burke." Sam ordered.

"Doc's out of town delivering the Ross baby."

"Then get Newly, but hurry."

He carried her up the stairs and down the hallway, kicking open her bedroom door and placing her atop a crocheted coverlet. Consciousness came back and with it nausea hard and violent. Sam was holding her head over a basin when Newly came rushing in.

O'Brien had grown up with an Uncle who was a physician and had attended a respectable Medical college. But the real learning for him had come when Doc Adams had taken him under his wing, sharing his lifetime of knowledge. Doc often told him Medicine was an art; to practice it well a man needed talent and an instinct for healing. "You've got that Newly, don't waste it." But now, seeing someone he cared about as much as Kitty Russell being torn apart by pain threatened to wipe his mind clean of any knowledge or skill leaving only fear in its place. He tried to recall something else Doc had told him, something about being able to transform himself from a friend to physician. "I liken it to a wall, which keeps me from seeing the patient as someone I know and care about." Standing in the doorway looking at the lady who was closer to him than any sister ever could be he realized he didn't know the first thing about building that wall Doc had spoken of.

When the bout of nausea had passed Sam gently laid her back against the bed pillows, Maybelle one of Kitty's girls had come in the room to see if she could help. Nervously, Newly sat down on the bed beside Kitty, and began an examination, he felt her forehead, then checked her pulse. "Miss Kitty, can you tell me where the pain is?" he asked.

Her reply came as a groan, "My stomach," she said, "here." With her hand she indicated her lower right abdomen. She tried to speak again, but the pain twisted through her and her words dissolved to a sobbing moan. Newly was shaken to the core, this was for more experienced hands than his. He could set a broken leg, or prescribe ointment for a rash but he wasn't a surgeon. Nervously he looked around the room and saw Burke anxiously watching from the doorway. "Ride out to the Ross place and tell Doc we need him here, tell him it's Miss Kitty."

Not waiting for an answer the gunsmith turned to Sam, "She's going to need an operation; we have to get her over to Doc's."

GS GS GS

O'Brien had rushed ahead and was setting things up for her arrival; Sam gently placed her on the exam table in the center of the room. They removed her clothing until all that was left was a dainty lace trimmed camisole and white cotton drawers. Gently he untied the drawstring to expose her abdomen, noticing with some surprise the old scars, which laced across her belly. He placed careful fingers on her stomach but even the gentle pressure caused her pain. Fitfully she tossed her head left and right.

Pages from textbooks flashed against his mind, lectures from his Uncle and Doc echoed in his thoughts. There was no doubt of his diagnosis, the symptoms were classic. Appendicitis! "We need ice Sam, all you can get."

"Is she going to be all right?" the worried barkeep asked.

"I don't know, just hurry with that ice."

The saloon girl who'd followed them there was wringing her hands and weeping. Newly didn't know if she'd be much help or not, "Maybelle I need you to get a telegram off to Marshal Dillon, he should be at Fort Dodge by now. Tell him Miss Kitty needs him."

"She's dying!" the hysterical woman wailed. "Miss Kitty's dying…"

"Pull yourself together Maybelle, Kitty needs you." The words were for the woman's benefit as well as his own for he knew how close he was to falling apart. Kitty Russell needed him, and he couldn't fail her. That knowledge formed the first bricks in the wall Doc Adams had told him about.

Alone with his patient, Newly checked her vital signs again, a spiking temperature, rapid pulse and shallow breathing told him things were progressing much too quickly. If Doc didn't return soon, he would need to perform the operation himself. If her appendix were close to rupturing the procedure would be much too delicate for his untrained hands.

GS GS GS

Matt Dillon had been sitting in Captain Bradley's office amiably drinking a glass of whiskey and talking old times when the knock at the door came. "Excuse me." Bradley said as he got up to answer it. The corporal at the door mentioned something about a telegram and the Captain stepped out in the hall to discuss it. When he came back in the room the somber expression on his face warned Dillon something had happened back in Dodge.

"What is it?" he asked, already rising to his feet and grabbing his hat from the desktop.

"Miss Kitty, she's taken ill, you are requested to return to Dodge City immediately." Dillon was out the door before the last line of the Captain's was delivered.

He found Festus in the tack room playing poker with Sergeant Holly and his men, "Kitty's sick." He told him. The cards were forgotten as Holly helped the two men gather their gear and saddle their mounts.

"You tell her I'm thinking about her Big Fist, tell her…." Uncharacteristically, Holly choked up and couldn't finish.

Dillon nodded. "I'll tell her."

On the ride back to Dodge, Dillon cursed heaven and earth and himself for he had known something was wrong and had done nothing about it. But Kitty was never sick; how could he have believed something was wrong now? Kitty Russell was indomitable; she was the one who nursed other folks back to health. A foreign emotion worked its way up from the pit of his stomach, pulling on his nerves and rattling his brain. In his life's work Matt Dillon had trained himself to deny fear, but this event had brought him face to face in a showdown.


	4. Chapter 4

Four

Sam had returned to Doc's office with the ice and he and Newly packed it around the patient's stomach. "Just maybe this will keep the swelling down," he explained, "and keep the appendix from rupturing." He made ready the surgical tray, put water on the stove to boil and opened Doc's medical book to the chapter on appendicitis. And then he prayed, prayed that he not be the one to do the surgery; prayed that he not be the one to kill Miss Kitty.

She was in pain, and she begged him to give her something to dull her suffering. He consented with just the smallest dose of laudanum. Pain was the gauge he was using to indicate how close they were to the appendix rupturing. As the medicine took control, her mind started drifting, O'Brien sat beside her, trying to comfort her, "Just lie quiet Miss Kitty, Doc will get here soon, just rest."

She looked at him with glassy eyes, seeing what she needed to see and not what was really there, "Doc." she said, "Don't tell Matt, promise me you've got to promise not to tell Matt."

"Doc's not here yet Miss Kitty, it's me Newly."

But his words didn't register for she was caught in another time; "Don't tell him about the baby, he can't ever know about the baby…"

Confusion added to the panic he was feeling, "Baby? Miss Kitty, are you going to have a baby?"

Like a godsend he heard footsteps on the stairway and then Doc opened the door. Taking off his rain soaked slicker he assessed the situation in one look. He pulled on his glasses and was at Kitty's side with agility that no one who didn't know the old man well would think him capable of. His exam was quick and his diagnosis concurred with Newly's.

The surgery was long, her appendix rupturing during the procedure - her life hanging by the barest of threads. Poison from the infection was racing through her blood stream. She was moved to the bed in the back room and the deathwatch began. Each member of the ordeal took their place; Sam paced the room shaking his head, Maybelle kneeled before a table in the far corner sobbing loudly while trying to recite a long forgotten prayer, Doc in the chair beside her, holding her hand, and Newly O'Brien staring blindly out the window. He had isolated himself from the rest of the vigil keepers, shouldering the blame for not acting sooner. He was thinking too of what she had said, "Don't tell Matt about the baby." He'd mentioned it to Doc just before his steady old hands had made the first incision with the scalpel. "Is she pregnant Doc?"

Adams had shaken his head, "There's no baby Newly."

She would wrestle with consciousness, and the best it would give her was that time thirteen years earlier. Her voice was frail as she looked to Adams for answers, "... my baby ... gone?" He nodded, unable to speak and she cried the words over again, "My baby ... baby ..."

Adams looked up from his patient to the Newly standing by the window listening, he swiped his gray moustache before explaining, "It happened a long time ago, and Matt never knew, she wanted it that way."

They hadn't heard the lawman enter the office or been aware that Dillon had been standing in the doorway with his eyes fixed on Kitty. He made his presence known then stepping out from the shadows. "Maybe you better tell me about it now Doc." His steely blue eyes left the beloved form on the bed for just a moment to stare into the eyes of his old friend.

Like the participants in a dance, Doc got up from the chair and Matt took his place, he lifted her hand in his like the passing of a lifeline from one survivor to the next and he held on knowing that without this lifeline he would surely drown. He said her name, "Kitty." And waited, hoping for some sign that she had heard him, but her feverish body was listening for other voices. He faced fear again, as the reality of what was happening hit him. His grip on her hand tightened, denying fear - he wouldn't let her go.

Festus, having seen to the animals entered the room followed by Bessie Roniger. For some reason, Kitty recognized her old friend and called out to her. Moving to the other side of the bed Bessie sat down and took her hand, "I'm here friend."

Kitty's voice was less than a whisper, "... baby…" she said, "Bessie… my…baby...dead"

Using the same words she had thirteen years before Bessie murmured, "I know Kitty but you mustn't think about it now, just think about getting better."

Adams returned to the room with the bottle of laudanum, which he carefully measured out and gave her. Slowly the painkiller took effect until she was finally resting.

Dillon's mind was in turmoil, "I need some answers Doc."

Adams studied the floor for a moment than looked back at his patient. The wall he'd built suddenly crumbled. Kitty Russell wasn't his patient, she was his friend, closer still than that, she was like his own daughter and he couldn't have loved her more had she been a product of his flesh. The old man was tired; he found a chair and sat down. The strain of the last hours had taken a toll on his eyes and he ran a weary hand over them before finally answering Dillon.

"Her appendix ruptured. I was at the Ross farm delivering Amy's baby, Newly was here with her, he did everything he could have done under the circumstances. There isn't much more we can do, just make her as comfortable as possible."

It was Festus who voiced the unthinkable, "She aint goint to die, is she Doc?"

Adams blinked his eyes like he had something in them, he fought against the anger in his voice, "There's nothing more I can do for her. Her living or dying isn't up to me." He saw how his harsh words hit them, and knew he had to give them some hope to hang on to, "if she's strong enough to make it through the night, well, maybe then we have a chance."

The air was hot and muggy, the kind that breeds twisters on the open prairie. Thunder and flashes of lightning crackled the night, but the rain had stopped for the time being. Bessie opened the window to let a little fresh air filter in. "It looks like we might be getting fireworks a day early courtesy of Mother Nature." She said.

Dillon didn't seem to notice anything, all his concentration was on Kitty; willing life giving energy from his great body to hers. Doc had said, "if she's strong enough to make it through the night…" He had strength enough for both of them.

His voice startled the quiet, "What was she talking about Doc?" he finally asked, "What baby?"

He'd had thirteen years to prepare himself to answer the question and yet he was at a loss for words. It was Bessie who answered, "It was all those years ago, when she was stabbed. She was expecting a baby, Matt. She was so pleased; she knew you'd be pleased too. She couldn't wait to tell you about it. She thought with all the sadness the two of you had been through this wonderful thing could bring happiness back to your lives. But before she could tell you, you told her it was all over, and then you rode out of town." Bessie choked back a sob at the memory and couldn't continue. Seeing her distress, Festus walked over to her and patted her back, "Don't you cry now Miz Roniger, Miss Kitty's gonna be alright."

All these years and he had had no idea, she had tried so valiantly to spare him this pain but the irony was the pain pierced as deeply as if it had all just happened. He looked at the lifeless hand in his, "then when she was stabbed …" he began, "she lost the baby?"

Adams nodded. "She couldn't bear for you to know, she felt it was her fault and she didn't want you to know the heartache she was going through."

Inhaling deeply, Matt said, "I guess you better tell me all of it now." Festus and Newly made a move to the door, but Dillon stopped them, "There will be no more secrets, Kitty needs all her friends with her tonight, and I guess you have as much right to hear this as I have."

Grimfaced they returned to their places and Doc began, "It was just before you heard the news about your friends that Kitty came in to see me, she thought she might be pregnant and I confirmed her suspicion. She was just delighted Matt, and she felt sure you would be too. She knew the changes the pregnancy would force, but after seeing you at Jeb Walker's house she knew they would be good changes. Before she got a chance to tell you, the telegram came about their deaths, you were so distraught that she couldn't tell you. It was a difficult time for her, she was suffering from morning sickness, and trying to keep the Long Branch going and she was grieving for the loss of her friends. Then when you came back and told her you couldn't see her anymore..." Doc shifted his view from Dillon to the woman in the bed. He shook his head and cleared his voice before continuing. "You left town, we didn't know when or if you were coming back. She kept trying to think positively, figuring that once you came back you would realize that the two of you belonged together and then she could tell you about the baby. But when you did come back you wanted nothing to do with her. The night of the stabbing, she had made up her mind to leave town, to make a new life for herself and the baby."

Adams turned again to the lawman; Dillon's face was a mask, only his eyes giving way to his true emotions. "Mrs. Roniger and I tried to talk her out of it, we tried to tell her that she had to talk with you first, tell you about the baby, but she said no, that she wasn't going to trap you that way. Either you wanted her or you didn't. The one thing I know for certain Matt, she wanted that baby more than anything in this world, but she told me she didn't even think when she stepped between Cade Mulgrew's knife and you. It was just the only thing she could do. After she was stabbed she wanted you with her, but she couldn't bear to have you know what had happened, after all you had been through, she didn't want to add to your grieving. She made me promise that I would never tell you about this, and now, well, I guess I've broken that promise."

**GS GS GS**

The storm had passed in the night and now the air hung less heavy than the day before. The first light of morning had broken; through the open window he could hear birds singing. Glancing around the room he saw everyone else was still sleeping. He looked down at Kitty lying so still he was afraid death had already paid its visit. But no, she was still with him, a gentle rise of the covers confirmed life.

It was July Fourth, Independence Day. Remembering the small velvet box in his vest pocket he thought how he had planned to give her it to her. After all these years he had wanted to do something special, even romantic. She'd always accused him of not having a romantic bone in his body, but he'd planned on proving her wrong. He had pictured the scenario so many times in his mind it seemed real to him. While the fire works were shooting in the sky he'd pull out the box and place the ring on her finger. Words, always difficult for him would suddenly come easily and he'd tell her how much he cared. That wasn't going to happen now and he sadly knew this might be his last chance to place the ring where it belonged.

Flipping up the lid he removed the delicate contents. It wasn't fancy, not by Kitty's standards, but the gold was of the finest quality, he'd made sure of that. Its beauty was defined by its simplicity; a brilliant cut amethyst stone was placed in the center of the ring, flanked on either side by a trio of small diamonds. He took her limp hand and gently slid the ring on her finger. His voice low, "Kitty Russell will you marry me?" She stirred and he thought for a moment the miracle had happened. He brought the ringed finger to his lips and kissed it.

Tenderly he placed her hand back on the bed and pushed himself to his feet. He stretched his cramped muscles. It was going to be a hot Fourth of July. Barely daylight and already the temperatures were soaring. Sam was awake now as well, and offered to get the coffee started, Matt nodded.

Festus was sleeping in a chair by the window his feet propped on the sill. Dillon nudged him awake, "It might get a little rough out there today; I'm going to need you to keep an eye on things."

The deputy rubbed the sleep from his eyes and took a quick appraisal of the situation. "Right Matthew." O'Brien was awake too, and he offered to help Festus and began to follow him out of the room. Dillon stopped him at the door, "I'm grateful for what you did for Kitty."

The younger man looked away his face riddled with guilt, "I just wish I could have done more."

"You did all you could Newly; no one can ask for more than that."

Bessie excused herself to check on her family, Will and the younger children were staying at Ma Smalley's and they'd planned on enjoying all the events associated with the holiday. Out on Front Street the celebrations of the day were taking place as planned with little regard to the drama going on in the small infirmary. A parade led by the Dodge City Women's Suffragette Society, followed by the City Band, the mayor, the Fire Department, and finally Percy Crump's hearse. After that there'd been an assortment of races, shooting contests, pie eating competition and the First Methodist Ladies Aid Society's play entitled a Tea Party in Boston. Looking out the window Matt Dillon realized that in the midst of the last twenty years Dodge City had become civilized.

**GS GS GS**

Dr. Adams sat next to Kitty; Dillon watched as the doctor carefully checked the incision and replaced the dressings. He was meticulous in his exam looking for any sign of improvement. His hand felt the pulse in her neck then reached for her forehead, "I wouldn't have believed it last night but I think she feels cooler, pulse is slower too. We might have a chance after all."

**GS GS GS**

When night fell, he was alone with her, Adams was seeing to Amy Ross and her new baby, Festus and Newly were keeping an eye on the streets of Dodge City and Bessie was with her family. From outside he heard the first loud booms signally the fireworks were about to begin. Like the lighting from last night's storm the room lit up with random bursts of light, and the small room shook with each loud explosion. He watched from the window, but the event brought only heaviness to his heart, and he moved away to sit with her again. He had brought a basin of water and a towel to bathe her with. Tenderly he stroked the moist cloth over her face and neck hoping to soothe her pain and cool the fever, which had spiked again that afternoon. It brought him some comfort that at least she looked peaceful, as though the demons she'd been fighting had left her. Lovingly he pushed away a stubborn lock of red hair from her forehead. He lifted her hand and ran the cloth over her fingers, his own lingering on the ring she wore.

He thought about the baby he had never known existed until yesterday. He grieved for the child and wondered how Kitty had kept this a secret from him for all these years. He imagined if the child had lived, picturing a sturdy fair-haired toddler reaching out for his hand, calling him `daddy.'

"If I'd only known about the baby." He breathed, he dropped from the chair to his knees enfolding her hands in his, and he bowed his head in prayer.

Kitty had been aware of Matt's presence all through that long painful day. She was aware of the saddle soap and sage smell of him, she was aware of his rough hands gently tending to the needs of her body. She heard his voice telling her to be strong and to fight. She was fighting but each time she tried to break through the pain to the light of his voice something pulled her back into the darkness. Now she heard him speaking of the unspeakable, the baby; their baby. She heard the pain in his voice and it matched the anguish she'd carried in her heart these past thirteen years. She forced her eyes open and saw him kneeling on the floor beside her bed. He said again, "If only I'd known about the baby."

She opened her mouth and formed his name, "Matt." If he hadn't been inches from her face he wouldn't have heard her speak.

"Kitty." All the joy and goodness in his life summed up in that one word. "Kitty."

"You ... know?" she questioned with a raspy whisper.

He swallowed and nodded, "I know about our baby."

Years of carrying the burden of this secret alone were lifted, as finally the two were able to grieve over their loss together. Too weak to fight the tears they spilled freely down her cheeks. With the pad of his thumb Dillon wiped them away. "Shhhh." He soothed, "it's alright Kitty, it's alright." He took her hand and pressed it to his lips. "It's all going to be alright now." When at last her tears were spent she noticed the ring.

"Wh ... this?" she asked.

His features turned boyish, "I asked you to marry me this morning."

Her smile broke through the tears like a rainbow after a storm, with great effort she said, "I wait … twenty years … you to ask ... marry you … you finally do… I'm unconscious."

He smiled back at her. "I guess you've got me on my knees already." He cleared his throat and wiped moisture from his eye with the back of his hand before beginning. "Miss Kitty, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

She nodded.


End file.
